Last minute Question about the XF100

[Anthony Mozora]

hey there...

I have managed to find an XF100 instock and I am ready to buy it but I have this last question for this item that is very important to me...

I had the canon xha1 and this camera will be the replacement. With the Canon XHA1 i had the safety recording same time tape and in datavideo dn60. what about XF100? can this camera record video on both slots same time, it is very important for me to know before I click pay now..........

[Nigel Barker]

Yes, it does both relay record (fill up one card & seamlessly continue recording on the 2nd card) & what Canon call Double Slot Recording that records footage to two separate CF cards simultaneously. Canon Professional Network - Canon launches palm-sized XF105 and XF100 pro camcorders

Incidentally this was something that the XF300/305 could not do at launch but has been implemented with a firmware update they just announced.

[Anthony Mozora]

thank u for your quick reply NIgel! I appreciate it! Hopefull the XF100 will be a good replacement for the A1

[Pete Bauer]

As well as the peace of mind with dual-slot recording, something I hadn't thought of but has been wonderful is being able to simultaneously copy one card to my editing box and the other to my archive. Nice.

Despite being very small and light (too light for a Vinten Vision Blue tripod, actually), this is a terrific camera with a pretty deep feature set. I'm still learning it -- the "buttonology" is a bit different than the XL and XH cameras -- but I'm really liking it so far.

[Steve Maller]

Originally Posted by Anthony Mozora

hey there...

I have managed to find an XF100 instock and I am ready to buy it but I have this last question for this item that is very important to me...

/ envious /
they're impossible to find here in the US

[Pete Bauer]

Yeah, someone actually suggested to me at NAB that I could "flip" my new XF105 for a profit since supply is nil as yet.

[Anthony Mozora]

I have pre-ordered the camera from a canon dealer in Greece and told me that I will have it early next week. :)

[Shufiyan Shukur]

I don't understand how the ND filters work ... how do I select the three settings for the filter? Or does it work in tandem with the iris?

[Nigel Barker]

I don't have my XF105 in front of me at the moment but as I recall the ND filter is automatic. There is no manual adjustment like there is on the XF305. In fact I think that there may not really be any ND fliters at all but instead the gain of the sensor is changed in software.

[Andy Solaini]

Originally Posted by Anthony Mozora

I have pre-ordered the camera from a canon dealer in Greece and told me that I will have it early next week. :)

Nice one. Let us know how you get on with it when it arrives. I still have no idea when my XF100 will turn up.

[Anthony Mozora]

Originally Posted by Andy Solaini

Nice one. Let us know how you get on with it when it arrives. I still have no idea when my XF100 will turn up.

I sure will, since I sold my last canon xha1 I just cant w8 to see how this camera work in the real world compared to the xha1 and compared to my Sony Nx5e as well

[Philip Lipetz]

The ND control is gain control, and you can manually adjust it via the presets in the control knob at the front of the camera.

[Charles W. Hull]

Originally Posted by Philip Lipetz

The ND control is gain control, and you can manually adjust it via the presets in the control knob at the front of the camera.

That's not quite right. It is a combination of ND and iris, not gain. When you set the preset for Iris(ND) and you push the center button it switches to manual, and then the knob adjusts the exposure varying both the iris and the ND filter. Seems a little strange but it works pretty well. The front control ring can be switched to do the same thing. The gain is controlled separately.

[Nigel Barker]

AFAIK there is no physical ND filter that flips in front of the sensor like on the XF300/305 & other camcorders so it is effectively gain adjusted in software. However it actually works it does seem to function OK.

[Charles W. Hull]

Originally Posted by Nigel Barker

AFAIK there is no physical ND filter that flips in front of the sensor like on the XF300/305 & other camcorders so it is effectively gain adjusted in software. However it actually works it does seem to function OK.

That could be; maybe we'll need to tear one apart to find out. Here is what the Canon sales literature says:

For enhanced versatility the XF100 offers a built-in gradation type neutral density (ND) filter (approximately 1/8), as well as an eight blade metal aperture iris.

I don't know why they would say ND filter if it actually just reduces the gain. Maybe Canon marketing couldn't bring themselves to say "gain reducer". Or maybe it really is an ND filter, but a hint that it is not a physical filter is that it operates smoothly throughout its range instead of in steps.

If it is just gain reduction then it would be nice to be able to reduce the gain manually and then adjust exposure with the aperture. However the most you can reduce the gain manually is -6 dB, which is not enough on a bright day, so you need to use an external ND filter if you want to work with only iris exposure control.